


Safe here with you

by Cats_Dont_Float



Category: Homestuck
Genre: Fluff, M/M, Nightmares, One Shot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-29
Updated: 2019-05-29
Packaged: 2020-03-26 07:52:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 992
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19001542
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cats_Dont_Float/pseuds/Cats_Dont_Float
Summary: Karkat has nightmares. Dave looks after him.





	Safe here with you

Karkat had a terrible sleeping pattern. He could go for days without ever going to sleep, before spending the next week taking constant naps. On the nights when he did go to bed, he would wake up several times in the night, and would usually end up deciding to leave the bedroom. Then he would just wandered aimlessly around the dark house for hours or sit watching movies and eating a ridiculous amount of snacks. Dave often came downstairs in the morning to find Karkat passed out on the sofa, or slumped in a random corner.

It was for that reason that Dave wasn't surprised at all when he woke up at 2 in the morning to find the other side of the bed empty. As usual, he rolled back over and buried his face in the pillows. But, after only a few minutes, he realised there was no way he was going to get back to sleep. The bed was cold without Karkat by his side, so he climbed out of bed and headed out.

The house was completely dark. That wasn't too much of a surprise; trolls apparently had much better vision than humans, and Karkat could navigate the house in the middle of the night with no lights on at all. But Dave, who knew Karkat well after almost a year of living together, knew that the troll liked to have at least one small lamp on, just so that the house felt a little safer to him. Karkat was still worried that somebody was going to try and cull him one day.

Dave wandered through the darkness for a few moments, stumbling down the stairs and peering into the living room and kitchen. He flicked on a few lights, checking for Karkat, but found him nowhere. Then he headed back upstairs, not sure exactly where Karkat could be. He wouldn't admit it, but he was starting to feel slightly worried.He had no idea where Karkat could be.

As he walked back past the bedroom, Dave noticed something he hadn't before. There was a thin line of light creeping out from underneath the closed bathroom door. Dave walked up quietly, and was just about to open the door when he heard a noise from inside. He pressed his ear closer to it. Sure enough, from inside he could hear the sound of something sniffling quietly.  
"Karkat?" Dave called quietly, "You okay?"  
"I'm fine," Called back a weak voice, "Go away." Dave smiled sadly to himself, and then reached down to slide the lock out of place from the outside. The locks in the house were awful, and Dave knew how to open all of them.

Dave crept in quietly, and spotted Karkat. The troll had his elbows on the side of the sink, leaning his whole weight on them, his face buried in his hands. He went to call out for Karkat, but was interrupted by him letting out a muffled sob and sinking further into his hands. Realising that Karkat hadn't heard him come in, he quietly walked over, and wrapped his arms around Karkat's waist from behind him. Karkat let out a panic squeal, and struggled for a second, before seeming to realise that he wasn't in danger.  
"It's just me," Dave murmured quietly, pressing his face into the back of Karkat's neck. Karkat sniffed, and raised one hand to wipe away his tears quickly.  
"Hi," Karkat said quietly.  
"You wanna talk about it?" Dave asked.  
"No," Karkat replied.  
"Okay then," Dave said quietly. He tightened his grip on Karkat's hips, and started to sway slightly, moving both of them from side to side in a slow, calming rhythm. Karkat's breathing started to slow slightly as he calmed down. After a few minutes, he turned in Dave's arm, and buried his face in Dave's chest.  
"Can we go back to bed?" Karkat asked quietly. Dave pulled the troll closer into his chest, and rested his chin on top of Karkat's head.  
"Yeah," he said, "Let's do that."

Dave woke up the next morning with Karkat still curled up tightly against his side. The troll had the bottom of Dave's shirt clutched tightly in his fists, and his face buried in the side of his neck. Dave gently shook Karkat awake, and when he stirred, he wriggled closer to him and pressed hundreds of tiny kisses across his cheeks and forehead.  
"What?" Karkat murmured tiredly as the two of them slowly sat up. He blinked up at Dave in a way that Dave found way too adorable. Dave let out a long sigh, not wanting to upset Karkat but knowing he needed to ask about the night before.  
"Karks," he said softly, "What happened last night?"  
"I keep dreaming about Gamzee," Karkat said, "He's always hunting me. Then last night I dreamed that he was hurting you. I felt like it was all my fault that you'd got hurt." Karkat was crying again, red-tinted tears spilling down his cheeks and dripping off of his chin.  
"Hey, hey," Dave murmured, pulling Karkat into a hug, "We're safe here. Neither of us is getting hurt. Okay?"  
"It's not just that," Karkat sighed, "It's my fault Gamzee killed the others. I wasn't a good enough moirail. I let him go crazy."  
"There's no way you could have kept him under control," Dave said, "That clown was crazy." As Karkat stiffened slightly, Dave murmured, "I'm sorry. Please, just don't blame yourself, okay? And you don't need to worry about me. No one's hurting the two of us." He pushed Karkat back very gently, hands still on his shoulders, and smiled at him. "We're safe."

Karkat stared at him for a few seconds, and then collapsed forwards into Dave's chest again.  
"I love you," Dave said, rocking Karkat from side to side.  
"I love you too," Karkat mumbled back.  
"Good," Dave said, kissing Karkat quickly, "Now come one, let's get some breakfast."


End file.
